Green Markets - August 2, 2024

Aug 02, 2024

Green Markets is a daily series dedicated to highlighting events of interest that could impact investments within environmental markets.

At COP29, the EU will advocate for emerging economies like China to contribute to climate finance, expanding the current $100 billion annual pledge. The EU aims to reflect the evolving global economic landscape by broadening the contributor base and focusing on support for the most vulnerable countries. They also emphasize the need for private investments to play a significant role in the new funding framework. The final EU position will be finalized in the coming months before the summit in November.
Vietnam and Japan are strengthening their partnership within the Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC) framework, focusing on energy transition and green projects. A working group has been established involving Vietnam’s Electricity and Renewable Energy Authority, the Japanese Embassy, and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) to drive specific initiatives such as improving coal-fired power efficiency, advancing renewable energy projects, and developing green technologies.

Verdalia Bioenergy, supported by Goldman Sachs Asset Management’s infrastructure unit, has acquired four biomethane plants located in the northern Italian regions of Piedmont and Friuli-Venezia Giulia. These plants are expected to become operational between Q4 2025 and Q2 2026 and will collectively produce around 230 GWh of biomethane annually by processing 262,000 tons of animal and plant-origin biomass.
Gunvor Group has agreed to partner with VARO Energy in constructing a large-scale Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) manufacturing facility at the Gunvor Energy Rotterdam site in a 50/50 joint venture. Since VARO's initial announcement in September 2023 of building a facility with a feedstock capacity of 350 kt per annum, the project has progressed significantly. Both companies will equally share the development costs and risks up to the final investment decision (FID), and subject to regulatory approvals, they will establish a project company owned equally by both parties. The facility, expected to complete its Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) phase by Q4 2024, will be capable of processing various feedstocks to produce either SAF or Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) products.

Sval Energi AS has selected Computer Modelling Group (CMG) to provide its integrated carbon capture and storage (CCS) solution to support the Trudvang CO2 Storage Project in the Norwegian North Sea. The Trudvang project aims to capture CO2 from various industrial sources in Northern Europe, transporting it via ships or pipelines for injection and permanent storage beneath the seabed, with a storage capacity of nine million tons of CO2 annually and a target start date of 2029.

Related Stock List(s): Carbon Capture Stocks

EuroGroup Laminations (EGLA), an Italian electric motor component manufacturer, is expanding its global footprint by acquiring a 40% stake in India's Kumar Precision Stampings for €19.9 million. This deal, expected to be completed by the end of the year, gives EGLA control over Kumar, a company that produces key components like stators and rotors for electric motors. Simultaneously, EGLA has signed a preliminary strategic alliance with China's Hixih Rubber Industry Group to form a joint venture aimed at enhancing its presence in the Chinese EV market. The venture will include the construction of a new R&D center and a high-tech plant for producing motor cores for New Energy Vehicles at Hixih Group's industrial base in Shandong province.

Langley Holdings has acquired GKN Hydrogen, a specialist in hydrogen storage and Power-to-Power technology, from Dowlais Group. GKN Hydrogen has developed advanced metal hydride compounds that safely store hydrogen in solid-state form at 16 times the density of compressed hydrogen gas, with no degradation for up to 30 years. The system, which can convert stored hydrogen back to gas by heating the hydride to 60°C, has demonstrated 99% efficiency over 7,000 charge/discharge cycles.

Related Stock List(s): Hydrogen Stocks

ExxonMobil has announced delays for its $10 billion Golden Pass LNG export project in Texas, pushing the date to late 2025 from the initially planned first half of next year. Despite these setbacks, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court approved a settlement allowing Golden Pass LNG Terminal LLC and its partners to expedite the resumption of construction, with Chiyoda now taking over as the lead contractor.

Related Stock List(s): LNG Stocks

Carbios, a French company specializing in biological recycling technologies for plastics and textiles, has signed a letter of intent (LOI) with Sasa, a Turkish polyester manufacturer, to potentially license Carbios' polyethylene terephthalate (PET) recycling technology. This agreement would allow Sasa to build and operate a 100,000-ton-per-year enzymatic depolymerization plant in Adana, Turkey, enabling the production of polyester pellets, fibers, and textiles from recycled materials.

Related Stock List(s): Recycling Stocks

Iberdrola has agreed to acquire an 88% stake in Britain's Electricity North West (ENWL) for approximately €2.5 billion ($5.4 billion), valuing the company at around €5 billion. The deal aligns with Iberdrola’s strategy to expand and upgrade power grids. This acquisition will make Iberdrola the second-largest electricity network operator in Britain. The remaining 12% stake will be held by a consortium of Japanese investors.
J-Power has finalized its acquisition of Australian renewables firm Genex Power for approximately AUD 1.04 billion ($680 million), including debt. Genex's portfolio includes major power generation and storage projects across Australia, such as the Kidston and Jemalong solar sites.

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